Here is how Mumbai Airport will maintain social distancing when it re-opens for business

While there is no firm date at the moment, the Mumbai Airport is getting set to prepare for a world where the Quarantine ends and they are back in business. A full house is going to be far at the moment, but the protection of the passengers and the staff from the CoronaVirus will be of prime importance when flights resume. In view of the Mumbai Airport Reopening (at some point in time) in the near future, the CSMIA has rolled out a preview of what to expect when the airport is going to begin being available to passengers to fly again.

The airport has formulated SOPs for post-lockdown safety of the passengers which include social distancing, stringent thermal screening, positioning temporary quarantine centres and also continues to sanitize and disinfect the airport to ensure safety and well-being of the passengers, once operations resume. Thermal screening of passenger at all entry gates will be necessary before they enter the airport terminal.

1.5 Metres distancing between passengers

To enable safety precautions at the airport, CSMIA plans to maintain social distancing through distinctive markings at both the terminals, maintaining 1.5 meters distance between each passenger. The special markings will be spread across the entry gate, check-in counters, self-check-in kiosks, security checkpoints, food courts, lounge area and the boarding area amongst others. Furthermore, the seating arrangements at the food court as well as in the terminal building are reshuffled in a manner that promotes social distancing.

Here is a slide from the internal slide deck of CSMIA Terminal 2 which prescribes the social distancing norms around the check-in areas. This is going to vastly reduce capacity, as we can all see and slow down how things will work. A note in the GVK deck notes that alternate check-in desks should be opened.

Quarantine Centres at CSMIA

Additionally, CSMIA has also created quarantine centres at both the terminals of the airport in case if any passenger shows symptoms of the virus during the screening which will be conducted before entering the terminal building. The airport will be assigning their personnel to assist travellers at the self-check-in kiosks to help with the boarding copy and other details along with stationing hand sanitizers at all the touchpoints. Departure Visitor lounges (Gate 3 or 7) will most probably be used as an isolation room for suspected passengers.

Contact-Less

In a bid to enhance passenger safety and lower the chances of spread of the virus, CSMIA will put special emphasis on the need for passengers to wear masks and gloves during the entire course of their travel. CSMIA will encourage passengers to check-in online, use card payment transactions and contactless payment at the airport restaurants and retail stores, to avoid contact.

The airport will open with 50% staff strength

GVK MIAL has put forth mandatory standard operating procedures (SOP) for the stakeholders and staff. In the initial phase of resuming operations, the airport will be functioning with 50 % staff strength as per the directives from the government.

Continuous Sanitation

The airport maintenance staff have been provided with renewed and effective cleaning procedures to efficiently sanitize and disinfect the terminal building including the vital areas where human hands come to play such as elevator buttons, escalators, immigration counters, to name a few. For instance, all trolleys banks to be sanitized after every 4 hours.

Bottomline

I’ve gone through the entire internal slide deck for Terminal 2 operations once the airport opens up, and what it looks like is that arriving at an airport will here on be like playing a game of minesweeper, or to use the language of kids, will be all about jumping puddles. Everyone will need to ensure they are at an adequate distance from everyone else. Passengers will be sequentially disembarked and embarked on the aircraft, and this means turnaround times will also increase.

What do you make of travelling in the post-CoVid-19 era and Mumbai Airport Reopening in these times?

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Comments

I am in mumbai. My family is in Gurgaon. I work in Gurgaon. Due to the lockdown, I am unable to travel back home to be with my family. I have been booking multiple flight tickets in the hope that at least some flight will ferry me back home. As a responsible citizen, I respected the decision of the lockdown and followed it to the core. But the govt is not bothered about people like me who are stuck across India and want to go back home. They are only concerned about migrant workers, students and followed by that blue collar workers outside India.
Is the govt even considering us citizens of this nation? Because the actions clearly make us think otherwise.
Staying away from your loved ones in this crisis, when there is so much anxiety and uncertainty about salary cuts, jobs, expenses has started taking a toll on our mental health.
But who cares if ppl like us slip into depression, face some mental health related issues or take some extreme steps also.
People like us who work hard in this country, who pay taxes, who obey the law and follow and respect the decisions of the govt, are fools and unimportant people. The govt will leave us to die, but not do anything to help us out.

my Air India flight for saudi Jeddah was scheduled for 16th march 2020.
my iqama form saudi Arabia has expired in april, and i am stuck here with my kids in bombay..while my husband is in Jeddah.
all our belongings are there.
please start atleast few flights in May.

M stuck in USA NJ with my son n my husband is in India Mumbai n he is alone no one is there take care As profession he is Dr n he has to go for work no cook n servent pls start international flights so we can back to home thanks

Same here. Why govt. is not thinking about the people who work abroad? I am stuck here, my family, belongings are all in USA. I fear my job will be gone if govt. dont allow international flights.
If they are thinking of airlift from other countries, they also should allow few international flights who has to travel abroad. Few days after USA will restrict non-immigrant visa entry, then people like me will be in deepest trouble, our job, our entire belongings everything will be gone. Please allow international flights for few days after 3rd May, with super restriction. Airports and flights are the places where sanitization can be handled easily, and to manage people

I am a resident of Dubai. I am held up here in Mumbai with my son. We had a return on the 27th March but the lockdown started before that. My husband is at Dubai.we are helpless over here.To add to it my son studies have also started and no books for him to study as well.Pls we would be very grateful if you could reach us back to Dubai.